Easy DIY 7-pin tow package complete

[SnowshoeBronco]

Hey all, after following some advice I decided to tackle the tow package problem on my rig. I used the ford hitch, 7 pin connector, curt wiring adapter and red arc trailer brake controller. The install was pretty simple:

1. Install curt 4-pin harness per instructions
2. Install redarc trailer brake controller under steering wheel with the pre wired harness for the bronco
3. Add a pigtail to the blue wire from the harness and run through the firewall plug
4. Fish 2 black wires and one blue wire from the engine compartment to the rear receiver ( I did this through a hole in the frame and over the exhaust heat shield)
5. Connect the blue wire in the engine compartment to the pigtail you added, and land the 2 black wires on the positive terminal.
6. Connect all the wires at the receiver to their matching colors (one of the black wires you fished is for the power for the curt adapter)
7. Tie up the wires with zip ties.

Overall, it performs well pulling my trailer and took about 3 hours in total.

Sponsored

 

[Richterman]

Link for the controller please

 

[SuperDave150]

@SnowshoeBronco Just to be clear - did you start with factory tow package (with factory wiring) or is this a total do-it-yourself operation ?

 

[SnowshoeBronco]

Link for the controller please

harness

Controller

sorry, first links were wack

 

[SnowshoeBronco]

@SnowshoeBronco Just to be clear - did you start with factory tow package (with factory wiring) or is this a total do-it-yourself operation ?

No tow package, I dropped it to get built.

100% DIY

 

[SnowshoeBronco]

Hey all, after following some advice I decided to tackle the tow package problem on my rig. I used the ford hitch, 7 pin connector, curt wiring adapter and red arc trailer brake controller. The install was pretty simple:

1. Install curt 4-pin harness per instructions
2. Install redarc trailer brake controller under steering wheel with the pre wired harness for the bronco
3. Add a pigtail to the blue wire from the harness and run through the firewall plug
4. Fish 2 black wires and one blue wire from the engine compartment to the rear receiver ( I did this through a hole in the frame and over the exhaust heat shield)
5. Connect the blue wire in the engine compartment to the pigtail you added, and land the 2 black wires on the positive terminal.
6. Connect all the wires at the receiver to their matching colors (one of the black wires you fished is for the power for the curt adapter)
7. Tie up the wires with zip ties.

Overall, it performs well pulling my trailer and took about 3 hours in total.

I gotta thank @Jimmiee here as he clued me into doing the pigtail which saved a bunch of time

 

[NVCowboy]

Do you have just a 7 pin or both? Did you cut the 4 pin off the curt adapter and wire into the 7 pin instead? I'm gonna have to re-read this, I follow and then get lost. Nice job though.

 

[SnowshoeBronco]

Do you have just a 7 pin or both? Did you cut the 4 pin off the curt adapter and wire into the 7 pin instead? I'm gonna have to re-read this, I follow and then get lost. Nice job though.

Curt 4 pin and cut and spliced to 7 pin pigtail that came with the 7 pin/4 pin socket from ford. The ford socket allows for both 4 pin and 7 pin to work when you wire it up this way.

 

[‘21OBX]

I gotta thank @Jimmiee here as he clued me into doing the pigtail which saved a bunch of time

Any pictures of said pigtail? I’m going to have to tackle this in the coming months.

 

[SnowshoeBronco]

I

Any pictures of said pigtail? I’m going to have to tackle this in the coming months.

I didn’t take one but it was just a spliced wire to the blue wire on the harness

 

[NJNMDoc]

This was super helpful! Smart as hell for all the folks who passed on Tow. I installed the hitch and I’m working through wiring options. Great timing- thank you!

 

[SuperDave150]

@SnowshoeBronco Which model RPod trailer is that?

 

[SnowshoeBronco]

@SnowshoeBronco Which model RPod trailer is that?

It’s a 177

 

[SnowshoeBronco]

Here are some pics of what I was describing:

 

[SnowshoeBronco]

This was super helpful! Smart as hell for all the folks who passed on Tow. I installed the hitch and I’m working through wiring options. Great timing- thank you!

Thanks, I put it off too long and now I’m kicking myself for not doing it sooner. It’s on par with fog lights as far as install difficulty.

Sponsored